This year’s Love Island boys might be the most toxic cast yet

It needs to be said: The boys in the Love Island 2022 cast are behaving in ways that are just straight-up toxic. Think of Tommy Fury sleeping with Molly-Mae’s Elly Belly while she was in Casa Amor, or the similarly wholesome Finn Tapp and Nathan Massey. But this year, we have Jacques calling girls “headaches”, Davide saying it’s a “gift” to kiss him (vom), and all-round double standards that have lead to people saying the boys are slut-shaming Ekin-Su.

Look, obviously Islanders are filmed round-the-clock, with the juciest bits condensed down into about 45 minutes and possibly without us seeing the full context behind them. 15-or-so Islanders are trapped in a villa with no one but themselves, and tensions are high so arguments are always going to happen. But these facts still don’t mean that we can’t call out what we see on our screens every night, and call some of the behaviour what it is – toxic.

Here’s all the ways the behaviour from the Love Island 2022 boys has just seemed straight-up toxic:

Jacques calling Ekin-Su a ‘headache’ was just uncalled for

Ekin-Su and Jay were coupled up and it looked like they were getting close, until Jay said he wanted to get to know Paige as well. They ended up having a big argument with Ekin-Su calling Jay a “mug”, and Jacques, who Paige is coupled up with, ended up sticking his oar in and getting involved.

He called Ekin-Su a “headache”, saying: “He [Jay] coupled up with you, but he found out what you are within two days mate… a fucking headache.”

The Love Island boys are slut-shaming Ekin-Su

People all over Twitter are saying the boys have been slut-shaming Ekin-Su. When Jay said he wanted to speak to other people the boys all stuck up for him, with Jacques even saying to Ekin-Su “He’s getting to know people. Why can’t people get to know each other?” – but in the same breath he called Ekin-Su a “headache”.

When Davide gave Ekin-Su absolutely nothing and she decided she didn’t like that and deserved better, she was called a player for moving on to someone else – when we all know the boys will back any other boy who wants to get to know multiple people. Davide said she’s going from “flower to flower” and it honestly just reeks of double standards.

One Twitter user said: “Danica and Ekin Su are constantly belittled by the boys (especially Luca and Jacques). It’s giving fragile, toxic masculinity. They can’t handle confident women”. Another said the boys have “double standards” for Jay and Ekin-Su, and called it “toxic lad culture”.

Davide acts like he’s god’s gift to mankind

Some of what he says is lowkey funny, but Davide just sometimes seems arrogant, he acts like he’s god’s gift.

When Davide and Danica were having a relatively normal chat, he practically jumped on her and kissed her. They’d just been talking about wanting to get to know each other but it came quite out of the blue and Danica seemed a bit taken aback.

Then in the beach hut, he said the kiss had been a “gift” to her. Sorry but even if that was a poorly-landed joke, it’s still gross to say – as if Danica has just been sitting there pining her whole life and waiting for Davide to come and kiss her.

Then later Davide even said he actually fancies Antigoni – double standards who?

Love Island 2022 continues on ITV2 at 9pm tonight. For all the latest Love Island news and gossip and for the best memes and quizzes, like The Holy Church of Love Island on Facebook. 

Related stories recommended by this writer:

• I’m sorry to say it, but these are the most Tory Love Islanders of all time

• Okay but how do the Love Island phones *actually* work? Here’s everything we know

• Quiz: Can you match the iconic Love Island quote to the Islander who said it?